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Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Ribs

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Oh my gosh, do I have a recipe for you today!!! It is so good, I could not wait to share it with you. Let me start by explaining the reason behind this meal. I went to a Pampered Chef Whipping Cancer Bingo party a couple of weeks ago and ordered their Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce. It sounded really good, a little expensive, but sounded interesting…..

barbecue ribs and a sweet potato on a white plate sitting on a blue swirl napkin

I started thinking about how I wanted to use my sauce when it arrived, and pork ribs popped into my head! I love ribs, so let’s give Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Ribs a try. Now being a food blogger, my other mission was to re-create this sauce so I could make it whenever I wanted to. So I read the ingredients on the back of the bottle and went to the store to get what I needed. Then right before I was about to start, I opened the bottle and gave it a taste. HOLY COW…..that is WAY TOO SPICY! I am so glad that I tried it before I went and poured it all over my gorgeous ribs!

So…..the first thing we are going to do is tone down the spice, and the smoke flavor while upping the cherry flavor.

How to make Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Ribs:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Slice onions into rings and place on a large baking sheet.

Place the rack of ribs on top of the onion slices.

Mix cherry concentrate, water (or cherry juice) and chipotle pepper together in a small bowl.

Pour mixture over the ribs in the pan.

baking sheet with onion slices and wine with a rack of ribs on top

Cover pan with with heavy duty aluminum foil and place in oven. Bake for 2 hours, or until meat starts to fall off the bones.

Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce:

Place all of the sauce ingredients into a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat.

all of the barbecue sauce ingredients in a sauce pan

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When ribs are done remove from oven.

Place on a clean baking sheet or platter and cover with sauce. Heat your barbecue grill or turn oven broiler on.

Place ribs on the grill to caramelize the sauce and give them a smokey flavor, or place under the broiler.

Cut ribs between the bones and serve with additional Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce.

cherry chipotle ribs piled on a white plate with a sweet potato

What ingredients are in cherry chipotle barbecue sauce?

I used cherry concentrate, not to be confused with cherry juice. This is pure cherry, no other juices are added…..

a bottle of cherry concentrate sitting on the counter

I bought a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, but then opted to just use the adobo sauce…..

chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

Okay I was lazy, I did not want to dig out the food processor to pulverize the peppers and onions.

Here are the sauces side by side…..

two glass bowls with two different barbecue sauces for comparison

Mine is on the left and the pampered chef is on the right. I am guessing that theirs is thicker because they used whole peppers and onions.

Side by side cherry chipotle barbecue sauce comparison

I had Alex taste both, he thought the Pampered Chef was too spicy as well, AND he preferred the flavor of mine. 🙂  We have very similar tastes, we prefer sweet over smokey and thin and sticky over thick and goopy. Yes, I realize that goopy is not a real word, but it works for me! He gave it two thumbs up and told me not to change a thing.

Bottom line, my sauce has a stronger cherry flavor, not overly smokey, and has a nice tingle of spice and heat. If you prefer to have your taste buds scorched, then by all means feel free to add the chipotle peppers and even some hot sauce!!!

When I went outside to barbecue the ribs, I noticed a strong floral scent in the yard. I searched around and finally realized that it is my lilac bush…..

picture of a lilac bush in the backyard

It smells amazing! Then I walked around and saw my Lily of the Valley…..

picture of a Lily of the Valley plant in the ground

Did you know that Lily of the Valley is the flower for May?

More delicious barbecue recipes:

Enjoy!!

barbecue ribs and a sweet potato on a white plate sitting on a blue swirl napkin

Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Ribs

If you are looking for something new to try on the grill this summer, these Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Ribs are the perfect sweet and tangy solution!
5 from 1 vote
Print Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cherry, chipotle, pepper, sauce, barbecue, ribs, pork, recipe
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 4 Servings
Calories: 1405kcal
Author: Lisa Johnson

Ingredients

  • 2 large onions sliced
  • 1 rack pork spareribs
  • ½ cup cherry concentrate you can substitute cherry juice for the liquid
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper

Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

  • 1 cup all-natural ketchup
  • 1 ½ cups brown sugar
  • 1 cup cherry concentrate
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 Tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 Tablespoons adobo sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon ground allspice

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
  • Slice onions into rings and place on a large baking sheet.
  • Place the rack of ribs on top of the onion slices.
  • Mix cherry concentrate, water (or cherry juice) and chipotle pepper together in a small bowl.
  • Pour mixture over the ribs in the pan.
  • Cover pan with with heavy duty aluminum foil and place in oven. Bake for 2 hours, or until meat starts to fall off the bones.
  • Place all of the sauce ingredients into a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat.
  • Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • When ribs are done remove from oven.
  • Place on a clean baking sheet or platter and cover with sauce. Heat your barbecue grill or turn oven broiler on.
  • Place ribs on the grill to caramelize the sauce and give them a smokey flavor, or place under the broiler.
  • Cut ribs between the bones and serve with additional Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce.

Notes

  • The cherry concentrate is thicker and more flavorful than a regular cherry juice. It does not matter when cooking the ribs, but it will make a difference in the flavor of the sauce.
  • The barbecue sauce recipe makes 2 cups of sauce. You will not use all of it in this recipe, so the nutrition counts are off.

Nutrition

Calories: 1405kcal | Carbohydrates: 121g | Protein: 53g | Fat: 78g | Saturated Fat: 24g | Cholesterol: 260mg | Sodium: 3071mg | Potassium: 1457mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 105g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Vitamin C: 9.5mg | Calcium: 171mg | Iron: 5.4mg

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19 Comments

  1. This sounds wonderful. Memorial Day is coming and that means company. This sounds like a perfect time to try it.

  2. Oh this sounds wonderful and perfect for summer barbeques! Yumm! I love your lilacs and lilies of the valley too! Those are two of my favorites and I don’t have any at this house. Hmmmm.

  3. This sounds fantastic, Lisa! I love spicy, fruity BBQ sauce. Cherry & chipotle sounds like a match made in heaven!

  4. The sauce is beautiful and the cherry flavor sounds awesome. I enjoy experiment with glazes and this will definitely go on my to-make-list!

  5. How interesting…I love what you did with the sauce. What a bummer that would of been if you would’ve dumped it all over the ribs. I think that that’s what I would of done…just assume it would of tasted how the label described. But this recipe is rockin! Love the flowers, too!

  6. G’day! Your ribs look AMAZING, TRUE!
    Love your step by step photos too!
    Cheers! Joanne
    What’s On The List
    Foodie Friends Friday Party!

  7. I’ve always wanted to make my own BBQ sauce, will have to give this a try! New follower here. I’m just stopping by to say hello from the Say G’Day Linky Party. Have a beautiful day and see you again soon! Gloria @The Resourceful Gals

  8. Goopy is a word in my book 🙂 The flowers are beautiful and the ribs are divine! My 16 yr old would *love* these 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing at last week’s All my Bloggy Friends – Linda and I look forward to seeing what you share this week! 🙂

  9. Oh, MY! These look absolutely stunning! I followed you here from Say G’day Saturday, by the way. Also, I’d like to invite you to come link up with me at my link party! I’d love it if you could stop by & link up some of your recipes!

  10. Thank you so much for linking up with me this week at Tasty Tuesdays! I’ve pinned this & shared it with my followers! Please be sure to stop back by tomorrow & link up your best “man food” recipes in honor of Father’s Day!

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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